How to Trip the Light Fantastic, Coat-wise

It isn’t just that we race from overheated auto, commuter train, or subway car to toasty office, though that certainly has something to do with it. It could also be argued that the trend toward lighter coats is part of a universal drift toward the delightfully less-substantial: the easy-to-tote handbag, the sliver of a sandal, the flimsiest frock, even in the dead of winter. Add to that the specter of global warming and our penchant for layering, our desire to pile on or strip down as the hours go by, rather than smother everything under a voluminous topcoat. But how light is light this season? How slender can something be and still qualify as a winter coat?

To quantify these developments, the Vogue.com team has put a number of Fall 2010’s coat contenders on the literal scale, weighing examples from Burberry to J.Crew to Joseph to Uniqlo's +J, comparing a host of stylish flyweights, welterweights, middleweights, along with some of the chicest heavyweights. And the results? Coming in at an enviable 1.8 pounds is Givenchy’s narrow, elegant topcoat. Second place is tied: Miu Miu’s jaunty plaid and Marc Jacobs’s lean gray topper register at two pounds each. Holding down middleweight status is Michael Kors (above) elbow-slit venture at an even four pounds. Pushing the scale’s needle far in the other direction, we arrive at another split decision: Reed Krakoff’s behemoth double-breasted great coat and Max Mara’s feminized interpretation of militaria, both a hefty 5.6 pounds at weigh-in.Click through the slideshow above to see how the others shaped up.